Journal of the New York Botanical Garden

VOL. XXX NOVEMBER, 1929 No. 359
JOURNAL
OF
THE NEW YORK BOTANICAL GARDEN
THE SHRUB YELLOW- ROOT
N. L. BRITTON
THE DEVELOPMENT OF SEEDLESS FRUITS BY BREEDING
A. B. STOUT
PALMETTO- WITH- A- STEM— SABAL DEERINGIANA
JOHN K. SMALL
McKELVEY'S THE LILAC
KENNETH R. BOYNTON
BROCKMANN- JEROSCH'S DIE VEGETATION DER SCHWEIZ
H. A. GLEASON
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THE NEW YORK BOTANICAL GARDEN
BOARD OF MANAGERS
HENRY W. DE FOREST, President R. A. HARPER
HENRY DE FOREST BALDWIN, Vice President JOSEPH P. HENNESSY
F. K. STURGIS, Vice President ADOLPH LEWISOHN
JOHN L. MERRILL, Treasurer D. T. MACDOUGAL
H. DE LA MONTAGNE, JR., Acting Secretary KENNETH K. MACKENZIE
EDWARD D. ADAMS PARKER MCCOLLESTER
SHERMAN BALDWIN BARRINGTON MOORE
CHARLES P. BERKEY J. P. MORGAN
MARSTON T. BOGERT LEWIS RUTHERFURD MORRIS
GEORGE S. BREWSTER HUGH NEILL
N. L. BRITTON H. HOBART PORTER
NICHOLAS MURRAY BUTLER HENRY H. RUSBY
ROBERT W. DE FOREST GEORGE J. RYAN
H. M. DENSLOW MORTIMER L. SCHIFF
CHILDS FRICK ROBERT THORNE
JAMES J. WALKER, Mayor of the City of New York
WALTER R. HERRICK, President of the Department of Parks
SCIENTIFIC DIRECTORS
R. A. HARPER, P H . D., SC. D., Chairman H. M. DENSLOW, A. M., D. D.
CHARLES P. BERKEY, P H . D., Sc. D. D. T. MACDOUGAL, PH. D., LL. D.
MARSTON T. BOGERT, SC. D., LL. D. BARRINGTON MOORE, A. B., M. F.
NICHOLAS MURRAY BUTLER, P H . D., HENRY H. RUSBY, M. D., Sc D.
LL. D., LITT. D. GEORGE J. RYAN, LL. D.
DIRECTOR EMERITUS
N. L. BRITTON, P H . D , Sc. D., LL. D.
GARDEN STAFF
MARSHALL A. HOWE, P H . D., Sc. D Acting Director- in- Chief
JOHN K. SMALL, P H . D., Sc. D Head Curator of the Museums
A. B. STOUT, P H . D Director of the Laboratories
P. A. RYDBERG, P H . D Curator
H. A. GLEASON, P H . D Curator
FRED. J. SEAVER, P H . D Curator
ARTHUR HOLLICK, P H . D Paleobotanist
BERNARD O. DODGE, P H . D Plant Pathologist
FORMAN T. MCLEAN, M. F., P H . D Supervisor of Public Education
JOHN HENDLEY BARNHART, A. M., M. D Bibliographer
PERCY WILSON Associate Curator
PALMYRE DE C. MITCHELL Associate Curator
SARAH H. HARLOW, A. M Librarian
H. H. RUSBY, M. D Honorary Curator of the Economic Collections
ELIZABETH G. BRITTON Honorary Curator of Mosses
MARY E. EATON Artist
ROBERT S. WILLIAMS Administrative Assistant
E. J. ALEXANDER Assistant Curator
ALBERT C. SMITH, A. B Assistant Curator
CLYDE CHANDLER, A. M Technical Assistant
KENNETH R. BOYNTON, B. S Head Gardener
H. M. DENSLOW, A. M., D. D Honorary Custodian of Local Herbarium
E. B. SOUTHWICK, P H . D Custodian of Herbaceous Grounds
ETHEL ANSON S. PECKHAM. Honorary Curator, Iris and Narcissus Collections
JOHN R. BRINLEY, C. E Landscape Engineer
WALTER S. GROESBECK Clerk and Accountant
ARTHUR J. CORBETT Superintendent of Buildings and Grounds
JOURNAL
OF
The New York Botanical Garden
VOL. XXX NOVEMBER, 1929 No. 359
THE SHRUB YELLOW- ROOT
This low shrub, the only known species of the genus Xan-thorhiza,
has long been of great interest to botanists, pharmacists,
and horticulturists. The wood of its long, slender rootstocks is
bright yellow and bitter; its long- stalked, pinnately compound
leaves are attractive and for a shrub unusual, clustered at the ends
of short, usually or often unbranched stems, with shining, ovate,
toothed, or incised segments; the very small, brownish- purple
flowers are borne in slender, drooping, compound racemes or
panicles, appearing in April or May, while the leaves are unfold­ing,
and are succeeded by small heads of inflated, yellowish,
i- seeded follicles. It was discovered in Georgia by John Bartram
in 1760, and subsequently grown by him in his garden, and intro­duced
into England by John Bush in 1766; there is some evidence
to indicate, however, that it may have been known to Banister, in
Virginia, many years previously.
The plant is from one to four feet high and grows naturally in
woodlands, from western New York to Kentucky, eastern Texas,
Virginia, and Florida, and has often been brought into gardens in
the eastern United States, where it grows luxuriantly and per­sistently,
as also in northern Europe. It does not appear to have
any natural enemies, being in this respect like some other mono­types,
doubtless having come through an enormous geological
time period, with all its immediate relatives lost, and itself become
resistant or unadapted to serious insect or fungus depredations.
Dr. Hollick has been unable to find any fossil species described,
however. Dr. Seaver tells me that one minute species of para­sitic
fungus, Phyllosticta Xanthorhisae, forming small spots, has-been
described on its leaves from West Virginia. Its natural
265
266
range as far west as Texas has been overlooked or doubted by n
cent authors, although recorded by Torrey and Gray in 184
( Flora of North America 1: 40). It may not exist in Texas nov
but proof that it did in 1837, is had by a specimen preserved i
Dr. Torrey's herbarium sent to him by Dr. Leavenworth, with
letter dated August 3, 1837, labelled as collected by Dr. Veatch <
Zavalla, Texas. I am indebted to Dr. Barnhart for calling my al
tention to this letter.
Most botanical authors have included the plant in the Crowfoc
Family ( Ranunculaceae), its floral structure being regarded a
more nearly in that affinity than elsewhere, perhaps as near th
Baneberries ( Actaea) as any other existing genus, and its foliag
somewhat resembles that of those plants, but its fruit is widel
different, as also its shrubby habit of growth. This affinity ha
not been undisputed, however, as by J. U. Lloyd and C. G. LI
in " Drugs and Medicines of North America " 1: 291- 304 ( ii
where it is maintained that it is better included in the Barbe:
Family ( Berberidaceae), its rootstocks being said to be so nearT;
like those of the Oregon Grapes, Berberis repens and Berberi
Aquifolium ( Odostemon species) that they could be substitutei
in commerce, and the yellow coloring matter had been shown a
long ago as 1862 to be the bitter alkaloid berberine.
The floral structure of the Crowfoot and the Barberry Familie
is closely similar, but this plant seems to be no more at home witl
Barberries than it is with Buttercups. It would not be surprisinj
if- some author should propose classifying Xanthorhiza in a fam
ily by itself, and thus further emphasize its high specialization
grouping it between Ranunculaceae and Berberidaceae. Plant!
were established in the Fruticetum at The New York Botanica
Garden in 1896, obtained from the nursery of Thomas Meehai
and Sons at Germantown, Pennsylvania, and have been persisten
and luxuriant ever since; the colony there has required trimming
from time to time to keep it from over- spreading; it is now ;
dense mass about eight feet in diameter, located a short distanci
north of the west end of the Long Bridge, near various species 0:
Berberis and Odostemon ( Berberidaceae), grouped to illustrati
the'Buttercup Family ( Ranunculaceae).
The Boulder Bridge, south of the Long Bridge, was built u
1907; in constructing the path across it small and rather shallov
267
planting pockets were provided on both sides, and knowing that
the Xanthorhissa grew naturally in Virginia in rocky woodlands,
it was planted in these pockets, where it has persisted luxuriantly
on the southern side, but less so and somewhat broken and dam­aged
by trampling on the northern side, where it is fully exposed
to the sun. It has also been used effectively at places in back­grounds
for the flower- gardens around Conservatory Range No. 1.
FIGURE I. The Yellow- root, Xanthorhisa simplicissima, growing on the
Boulder Bridge, in The New York Botanical Garden, from a photograph by
Miss Griffith.
Medicinally it is not now regarded as of importance, although
as a drug it was given prominence in the earlier pharmaceutical
literature of the United States, but discarded from the United
States Pharmacopoeia in the edition of 1880.
Bibliographically, this plant has recently been brought into
prominence by Mr. T. A. Sprague in " Bulletin of Miscellaneous
Information," of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, England,
1929: 235, 236, where, characterizing it as aberrant, he points out
268
that the botanical name Zanthorhiza apiifolia given to it by
L'Heritier, and used for it by nearly all authors under Zantho­rhiza
or Xanthorhiza must, by the application of the nomencla­torial
rule calling for the use of the earliest published specific
name be abandoned in favor of Xanthorhiza simplicissima Mar­shall.
Marshall's " Arbustum Americanum," where the genus
and species are described on page 167, was without doubt pub­lished
as a small octavo volume late in 1785. L'Heritier's " Stir­pes
Novae aut minus Cognitae," an illustrated folio volume, bears
the date 1784 on the title- page, but this is erroneous, because it
was published in seven fascicles, and fascicle 4, in which Zan­thorhiza
apiifolia was described on page 79, and beautifully illus­trated
on plate 38, although bearing the date 1785, was not pub­lished
until March, 1788, as recorded by Britten and Woodward
in 1905 ( Journal of Botany 43 : 267), a decision accepted by Mr.
Sprague and also by Dr. Barnhart as correct, but not taken up by
authors, all of us having hesitated for one reason or another. It
thus appears that we must henceforth use the name Xanthorhiza
simplicissima Marshall.
Marshall, perhaps, thought that L'Heritier had the priority, be­cause
there is in Dr. Torrey's herbarium, deposited at The New
York Botanical Garden, a well- preserved specimen of the plant,
collected in Marshall's garden, near Westchester, Pennsylvania,
on May 12, 1827, thus over 102 years old, labelled Xanthorhiza
apiifolia.
It is of interest to note, that in " Drugs and Medicines of North
America," above cited, it is maintained that simplicissima is the
right name to use, the false date on the title- page of L'Heritier's
work being there discussed, thus anticipating Mr. Sprague's re­sult
by 43 years; caustic criticism of the French author is there
indulged in, perhaps without forethought, because while the title-page
of " Drugs and Medicines of North America " bears date
1884- 1885, its last part, containing the learned account of Xan­thorhiza
is dated March, 1886!
In " Botanisher Jahrbiicher" 16: 319, 320, published in 1.892,
Herr Huth gives an account and description of the genus and
species, with reference to the contribution by Messrs. Lloyd, and
describes a variety ternata, having simply ternate leaves, the leaf­lets
cuneate- based and with entire lobes, founded on a specimen
269
in the herbarium of Portenschlag, preserved in the imperial her­barium
at Vienna; we have not seen foliage agreeing with this
description. Huth's orthography is Xanthorrhiza apiifolium;
under the geographic distribution of the genus he erroneously
cites the range from Carolina to New York as in the Pacific region
of North America, but has it correct, as Atlantic, in his account
of the species.
The generic name Xanthorhiza is Greek, with reference to the
yellow wood; perhaps the spelling Xanthorrhiza, favored by sev­eral
authors, as by Mr. Leggett in 1870 ( Bulletin of the Torrey
Botanical Club 1: 14) will be regarded as preferable, although
departing from Marshall's original spelling; it thus appears in
Britton & Brown's " Illustrated Flora of the Northern States and
Canada," as Judge Brown followed Mr. Leggett's dictum.
The specific name simplicissima refers to the simple, often or
nearly unbranched stems; it is not quite definite, however, because
on plants three or four feet high, there are often two to five
branches near the top; apiifolia is with reference to the resem­blance
of its leaves to those of Parsley, which is not very close,
and the plant has also been called Parsley- leaved Yellow- root.
The specific name tinctoria, referring to the yellow pigment, was
maintained for it by Dr. Woodhouse in 1802 ( Medical Repository
5: 159), because he did not regard either of the others as accu­rately
descriptive; it may be remarked, finally, that prior to Mar­shall's
botanical descriptions of the genus and species in 1785, the
plant had been designated Marbosia tinctoria, probably by its dis­coverer,
John Bartram, but no botanical publication of this, its
oldest name, appears to have been effected ( see Drugs and Medi­cines
of North America 1: 294).
N. L. BRITTON.
270
THE DEVELOPMENT OF SEEDLESS FRUITS BY
BREEDING1
At the present time there is no seedless fruit among the tree,
vine, or small fruits of out- door culture that is grown in commer­cial
proportions in the State of New York. We may therefore
ask ourselves in which of our various fruits will it be of advan­tage
to have seedless kinds, and in which of these will it be pos­sible
to obtain such varieties. In other words, do we want seed­less
fruits, and, if we do, can we have what we want?
Nearly 40 years ago ( 1890) Dr. E. Lewis Sturtevant, who had
shortly before retired as the first Director of this State Experi­ment
Station where we are guests today, wrote a paper summa­rizing
much historical and horticultural lore regarding the occur­rence
of seedless fruits. 2 We need not spend the time today to
review the list of such plants mentioned in that paper and in more
recent horticultural and botanical records. We may, however,
note that seedless or near- seedless fruits have appeared in such a
wide variety of plants that the development of such fruits seems
possible for any fleshy fruit.
It is worth our notice and reflection to recall that some of the
world's most important fruits are seedless. Seedless bananas,
especially of the Gros Michel clon, the Washington Navel Orange,
and various of the seedless pineapples are to be purchased in
quantity in season at almost any fruit shop and grocery store
throughout the entire United States. The Sultanina or Thomp­son
seedless grape is one of the world's most important raisin
grapes, and in recent years it is also being widely eaten as a table
grape. The seedless bread- fruits are valuable foods in the tropics.
The near- seedless Marsh grape fruit and the Eureka lemon are
the elite fruits of their respective kinds. The commercial culture
of the seedless persimmons is rapidly being extended in California.
Other tropical fruits, seedless or near- seedless, could be men­tioned,
which have much promise. Seedless fruits rank high in
tropical and subtropical horticulture.
1A paper presented to The New York State Fruit Testing Associa­tion
at its Eleventh Annual Meeting, which was held at the New York
Agricultural Experiment Station, Geneva, N. Y., September 19 and 20,
1929.
2 On Seedless Fruits. Memoirs Torrey Botanical Club 1: 141- 185.
27I
When we turn out attention to the crops widely grown in our
temperate region, we note that seedless or near- seedless fruits
have long been known in the apple, in the pear, and among certain
of the stone fruits and the small fruits, and that plants bearing
seedless berries have rather frequently appeared among the seed­lings
of our hardy grapes. But in none of these has any plant
given seedless fruit of size, quality, and productiveness to the de-
FIGURE 2. The flowers of the apetalous or navel apples have no petals
and no stamens. Since the flowers are green, a tree of this type is some­times
erroneously called " bloomless." Green sepals are present and the
number of styles is usually nearly double the normal number of five.
With proper pollination some seeds will develop.
gree that has satisfied the standards of horticulture. In our vege­table
fruits, however, some of the best of the eggplants, cucum­bers,
and tomatoes are seedless, or are at least near- seedless.
Plants bearing seedless or near- seedless fruits have arisen and
will " continue to arise as variations among the seedlings: that are
272
grown. In general, our horticultural fruits have all been bred and
selected for increased size, together with quality; and along with
this development there has come very generally some reduction
in the total number of seeds, or at least there is a greater propor­tion
of pulp to the number of seeds than in the fruits of the wild
progenitors. Compared with the wild ancestors, the present hor­ticultural
fruits are greatly increased in size, and their develop­ment
is somewhat less dependent on the stimulus of seed forma­tion.
A seedless fruit is merely the last step in the evolution of
the fruit as a vegetative structure.
Most plants which bear seedless fruits may be used as parents
in breeding. Even seedless bananas produce some seeds to abun­dant
pollination. The Gros Michel banana is very susceptible to
the " Panama disease " but it is being crossed with bananas more
resistant or immune in the effort to combine in the progeny both
quality of fruit and resistance to disease. Seeds may be had
rather abundantly from pineapples and from the Washington
Navel orange by making proper cross- pollinations. The seedless
vinifera grapes have much good pollen and may hence be used as
male parents, and the near- seedless grapes may also be used as
female parents. The apetalous apples have no stamens and pollen
but they will yield seed to proper pollination.
Probably all of us will agree today that a good hardy seedless
grape would be highly desirable and valuable for culture in New-
York State. For 10 years The New York Botanical Garden has
cooperated with the Horticultural Department of this State Ex­periment
Station in a project of breeding which aims to develop
hardy seedless grapes of high quality. At the present time the
tender vinifera seedless varieties, Sultanina, Sultanina Rose, Sul­tana,
Panariti, Black Corinth, and Black Monukka, have all been
used as pollen parents in hybridizing with various hardy grapes.
A. considerable proportion of the seedlings from such crosses are
tender and die in the nursery, but a few have been hardy and by
continuing the work the total number of hardy seedlings obtained
has increased.
Of the grape seedlings from this breeding which have already
come into fruiting, one is of noteworthy promise. 3 The vine is.
3 Descriptions of this vine and a report on its parentage, illustrated
by photographs, have been given as follows: A New Seedless Grape.
Jour. N. Y. Botanical Garden 28: 20- 23. 1927. A New Hardy Seed­less
Grape. Jour. Heredity 19: 316- 323. 1928.
273
C £.
274
vigorous in growth, and it appears to be hardy here at Geneva.
In its second year of fruiting it bore 13 clusters of fruit. The
bunches are well- filled, strongly shouldered and the largest weigh
at least a pound. The berries are greenish white, or yellowish
when over- ripe, meaty, and vinous. The fruit is almost like that
of the well- known Sultanina extensively grown in California.
This year the parent vine was almost stripped of its flowers in
using the pollen for further breeding so we are unable to exhibit
today the best bunches which this plant is able to yield. We have,
however, several clusters weighing from 8 to 12 ounces here on
display. This vine is being propagated as rapidly as possible, and
in a few years vines will be distributed for trial. There is every
reason to believe that the methods we are using will give other
seedless grapes with hardiness of vine and excellent quality of
fruit.
Turning our attention to the tree fruits, it would seem that a
good seedless apple would be a desirable acquisition to pomology.
Seedless apples were known to the ancient Greeks and Romans
and for at least 350 years there have been frequent references in
horticultural literature to a curious apple which was reported to
have no blossoms and to bear fruit without core or seed. At least
two clonal varieties of such apples are now grown at this Station.
The flowers are without petals or stamens, and are hence reduced
almost to green branches. The fruits are often seedless, with
more or less compressed seed- chambers, but seeds may be present.
It is interesting and possibly important to note that the fruits are
what we may call " navel apples." There is at the apex a small
accessory or proliferated fruit of the same general nature as that
seen in the navel orange. Here we have an excessive vegetative
development of the main axis or stem of the flower. This char­acteristic
may prove to be an important one in the development of
seedless and parthenocarpic fruits. At any rate, it is one to which
the breeders of pome fruits may well give special attention.
A fully parthenocarpic apple or pear, like the navel orange,
would be self- fruitful even with no pollination whatever, and
hence in growing it the pollination problem would be removed
from the hazards of securing a crop of fruit. Possibly this char­acter,
already present to some degree in certain apples, may be de­veloped
further and combined with good quality, size, and pro-
275
276
ducdveness. Such fruits will be an improvement over the apple
varieties of today at least in being self- fruitful. A study of the
fruiting habits of these old clons of the apetalous or navel apples
is being made here at this Station and also breeding work with
them as seed parents is now under way here.
The references already made to the seedless grapes and the
navel apples illustrate how seedless or near- seedless types of fruit
which already exist may be used in breeding for further improve­ment.
We should indeed like to know the exact procedure of
nature's process in giving to mankind such splendid seedless
fruits as the Gros Michel banana, the Washington Navel orange,
and the Sultanina Seedless grape. Were these sudden and wide
deviations, the " mutations " of modern genetical parlance, or are
there some definite trends of development, or are there some­thing
like the so- called " complementary hereditary factors"
which, if we understood their behavior sufficiently, could be com­bined
in the production of seedless fruits? Undoubtedly, in the
growing of all sorts of horticultural plants from seed many indi­viduals
that produce seedless or near- seedless fruits are being dis­carded
and destroyed because the fruit lacks size, quality, or
productiveness. But such plants may indeed prove valuable for
use in selective breeding. The seed parent of our new hardy
seedless grape already mentioned is a near- seedless individual
that does not have bunches large enough to warrant propagation.
Ordinarily it would be discarded and destroyed.
Little attention has been paid to the breeding of our fruit crops
for seedlessness and we know very little of the inheritance of
seedlessness in these plants. But a study of seedless fruits shows
that there are various types of flowers and of fruits involved. It
does not appear that there is one simple principle of development
for all. In breeding these we need to understand how and to what
extent each of them may be used in breeding, to use our best com­mon
sense in selecting parents and in judging the offspring, and
to continue breeding unto the second and third generation, invok­ing
as moral support the aid of the most useful of the theories of
genetics.
The breeding of cucumbers conducted by Mr. Wellington, now
of this Agricultural Experiment Station, and his associates has
given results of special interest and of significance in relation to
277
the inheritance of seedlessness. Certain cucumbers, mostly En­glish
varieties used in hothouse culture, produce seedless fruits
without pollination, but if there is pollination, seeds are produced.
The fruits are hence parthenocarpic and the set of commercial
fruit is not dependent upon insect or hand pollination. In the
breeding work in question parthenocarpic and non- parthenocarpic
varieties were hybridized and the progenies were grown into sev­eral
generations by pedigreed breeding. There was much varia­tion
among the various generations in respect to seedlessness and
other characters, but by selective breeding a fully parthenocarpic
variety was again obtained. This variety, now named the Geneva
cucumber, possesses certain qualities different from either of the
parents used in the hybridization. Such results support the view
that the character of seedlessness is hereditary and that hybridiza­tion
and selective breeding is effective in combining seedlessness
with highly desirable qualities from different parents or even with
the expression of new qualities to give new clonal varieties of
merit. That careful selection of parents with reference to good
qualities in the crossing of seedless and near- seedless grapes may
give new seedless varieties of special merit has also been demon­strated
in our results with grapes.
It is unwise and certainly it is unnecessary to predict that seed­less
fruits will in time supplant the best of the seeded varieties in
the fruits grown commercially here in New York State. On the
other hand, it would be a lack of imagination on our part to in­sist
that excellent seedless varieties are not possible in many of
these fruits. Dame Nature has already provided many valuable
seedless fruits among tropical and sub- tropical plants, and in most
cases these have been propagated from ancient time. With the
greatly increased knowledge of today regarding plant- breeding
we should, it would seem, be able to help nature in the production
of excellent seedless fruits valuable . for temperate regions.
A. B. STOUT.
278
PALMETTO- WITH- A- STEM — SABAL DEERINGIANA
Field study lias not increased the number of our native palms
to the extent that it has added to some of our other genera, for
example, Iris and Opuntia, but the rather recent discovery of two
species of the genus Sabal, one in Florida and another in Louisi­ana,
thus adding two native palms to the native species heretofore
known in the continental United States is really a rather high per­centage
of increase.
The Florida palm referred to above, Sabal Jamesiana, has al­ready
been described in this journal. 1 Its geographic range has
not been materially extended, but it has been found in several ad­ditional
hammocks of the Everglade Keys. It grows in a thin
layer of sand on a rock foundation, with more or less humus in­termixed.
Its nourishment is scant. This fact is reflected in a
graceful palm with in no way great vigor or bulkiness.
On the other hand, Sabal Deeringiana grows in bottomless
gumbo with copious nourishment, which is reflected in a very
vigorous and bulky palm.
The'tenth of April, 1925, was to become botanically a memo­rable
day, for on it and almost simultaneously were discovered,
as far as number of species and variety of color is concerned, the
iris center of the world and a palm with a tall stout trunk in a
country where only a trunkless palmetto ( Sabal minor) was sup­posed
to exist.
Several years ago in scanning literature for references to palms
of the continental United States the following rather startling
reference was stumbled on. " It is also in the lower portion of
this belt [ Coastal Plain of Texas] ( where the palm tribe is rep­resented
by the Chamaerops Palmetto) that the Palmetto attains
a growth as gorgeous even as in the lower Mississippi; it extends
on the Rio Bravo [ Rio Grande] up to about 80 miles from the
gulf."
" In addition to the Palmetto common to the lower portions of
these two great rivers, . . ." 2
This reference to a gorgeous growth of cabbage- trees along the
lower Mississippi River had usually been taken, to say the least,
1 Journal of The New York Botanical Garden 28: 181- 185. 1927-
2 Arthur V. Schott, in Report, United States and Mexican Boundary
Survey I2: 44- 1857-
279
FIGURE 5. A medium- sized specimen of Sabal Deeringiana in the ham­mock
several hundred yards back of the shore- line of Lake Pontchartrain,
near Frenier Beach, about forty miles west of New Orleans. In this
case the complete leaves have fallen from the stem, thus leaving a naked
cylindric trunk. Spent flower- stalks ( spadices) may be seen extending
above the leaves. The tips of these have been broken off. The flower
_ stalks are often fully twice as long as the leaves and bear myriad flowers
and very numerous fruits.
28o
as an exaggerated statement, even up to the spring of 1925, On
the one hand the cabbage- tree ( Sabal Palmetto) had not been col­lected
or otherwise even been mentioned as growing within the
one thousand mile stretch between Saint Andrews Bay in Florida
to the mouth of the Rio Grande in Texas. On the other hand,
even a copious growth of the dwarf- palmetto ( Sabal minor) the
only palm then known to grow naturally in the lower Mississippi
delta would scarcely have been referred to as " gorgeous" by
Arthur Schott or compared by him to the cabbage- tree.
Field- work in the lower Mississippi delta by the writer subse­quent
to the spring of 1925, has convinced him that the extensive
engineering operations connected with the buildings of the levees
along both banks of the river utterly exterminated the palm
growth referred to by Schott. Arthur Schott3 made his observa-
3 Arthur Carl Victor Schott was born February 27, 1814, at Stuttgart,
Wurttemberg. He was educated in his native city, and at the institute
of agriculture in the neighboring village of Hohenheim. He then man­aged
various estates in Germany, and was for ten years in charge of a
mining property in Hungary. In 1848 he traveled through southern
Europe, Turkey, and Arabia. In 1850, already an accomplished linguist,
artist, and naturalist, he came to America, where he almost immediately
made the acquaintance of Professor John Torrey, of New York. In the
following year he was appointed a surveyor on the Mexican Boundary
Survey, and in September, 1851, sailed from New York to New Orleans,
and then proceeded overland, in company with C. C. Parry, to El Paso;
from San Antonio, J. M. Bigelow was also a member of the party. Schott
spent the entire year 1852 on or near the lower Rio Grande, with head­quarters
most of the time at Eagle Pass; some of his surveys were in a
region never since visited by a botanist. At first he collected plants on his
own account, but later he was officially authorized to collect not only plants
but also specimens in other branches of natural history. After a few
months, from February to April, in Washington and New York, he re­turned
to the field in May, 1853, going overland to New Orleans and across
country to the Rio Grande. Before the end of the year he was again in
Washington, working on official reports for the survey. Late in 1854 he
again took the field, at the western end of the Boundary, going by way of
the Isthmus to San Francisco, and returning down the coast to San Diego,
where he arrived about the first of November. Most of the year 1855 he
spent along the lower Colorado River and in Sonora, and in 1856 and 1857
was at Washington, still connected with the Boundary Survey. Late in
1857 he spent several months with a surveying party in the Atrato River
region of Colombia. After his return to Washington he remained in the
employ of this survey commission until the completion of its report in
1864. From- 1864 to 1866 he was in charge of an official geological survey
• 28i
tions about the middle of the last century, while the extensive
levee building occurred about the beginning of the last quarter of
that century. It is evident that neither the engineers in charge of
the levee work nor their associates were botanists, else some
record additional to Schott's original statement would have found
its way into print.
Had the study of our native palms been taken up seriously
before the end of the first quarter of this century, this striking
palm and its haunts would not have remained secret for three-quarters
of a century after Arthur Schott gave the clue to their
existence.
To meet with erect- stemmed palms hundreds of miles out of
the known geographic range of any such plant was a great sur­prise.
A first glance at the trees naturally suggested the cabbage-tree
( Sabal Palmetto). A second glance indicated something
quite different. This palm, although resembling the cabbage- tree
in habit, is really related to the blue- stem ( Sabal minor)— a giant
blue- stem.
Arthur Schott, like several other botanists, made a bad guess
concerning the identity of the palm in the delta of the Rio Grande
in Texas by reporting it as the cabbage- tree ( Sabal Palmetto).
This Texan palm, since Schott's time referred to Sabal mexicana,
and since this preliminary disposition of it described as Sabal
texana* is really a true cabbage- tree, distinct botanically from
the classic cabbage- tree ( Sabal Palmetto) but quite similar in
habit. On the semi- circular coast line of the Gulf States we find
two kinds of true cabbage- trees— Sabal Palmetto on the Florida
; Coastal Plain and Sabal texana on the Texas Coastal Plain. Al­though
now widely separated geographically and morphologically,
they may have sprung from a common ancestral type, and each
may once have had a wider geographic range. Midway in this
coastal region we find a palm of a quite different group of the
genus Sabal, but with the general habit of the cabbage- trees. In
for the, state of Yucatan, and while there collected nearly a thousand
plants. The remainder of his life was spent in the employ ' of-.. various
governmental bureaus in Washington, where he died July 26, 1875.—
JOHN HENDLEY BARNHART.
4 For a history of this palm see Journal of The New York Botanical
Garden 28: 132- 143. 1927.
282
FIGURE 6 A medium sized specimen of Sabal Deeringtana situated near
the one shown in FICURE 5 In this case the " boots,' as the clasping
leaf- bases are popularly termed, are persistent on the trunk The great
size of the leaf- blade is shown by a comparison of the drooping leaf-segment
and the two- foot machette standing at the base of the trunk.
The palm usually grows in places that are overflowed parts of the year.
This plant grew in a lower spot than that shown in FIGURE 5, as is evi­denced
by the mass of roots which form about trunk bases where water
stands for a considerable period.
283
addition to being intermediate in geographical distribution, this
palm is intermediate in morphological characters as regards the
true cabbages and the blue- stems5 or dwarf- palmettos. Sabal
Deeringiana is morphologically most closely related to Sabal
minor by the erect leaves, the stiff erect leaf- lobes, the flat leaf-blades
and the erect spadices, which exceed the leaves in length.
On the other hand, it resembles Sabal Palmetto by the erect trunk
with persistent or deciduous " boots," and the midrib, which ex­tends
into the leaf- blade for about one- third its diameter.
The two blue- stems�� dwarf and giant— may have descended
from the same ancestral palm. At the present time Sabal minor
is the most wide- spread of our native palms, while S. Deeringiana
is one of those with a very restricted geographic range. Where
it originated we cannot tell. It has certainly migrated to its pres­ent
haunts, for in its early history the present region it inhabits
was sea instead of land. Like many other plants of the lower
Mississippi delta, it has left no trace of its line or lines of mi­gration.
The geographic limits of Sabal Deeringiana are not yet per­fectly
known. It grows in swamps and along bayous in the lower
Mississippi delta. It has not been observed east of the Pearl
River, nor west of the Atchafalaya River.
Sabal Deeringiana is one of the massive palms. Its success in
eluding the eye of the botanist and the layman for over a century
and a quarter seems nothing short of mysterious. That a palm
with a massive trunk up to nearly two feet in diameter bearing a
crown of numerous leaves with blades up to six feet in diameter
and erect, feathery- branched flower- stalks up to eighteen feet
long, 6 growing naturally in a well- settled region, even nearly or
quite within the city limits of New Orleans, should have remained
botanically undiscovered until Anno Domino 1925 seems surpass­ing
belief. Yet more strange is the almost total ignorance of its
occurrence by residents who have spent nearly their whole life in
the region it inhabits. In answer to queries concerning the occur-
6 Stem in this case refers to the leaf- petioles, not to the stem or trunk
of the plant.
6 The relative massiveness of the two blue- stems may be measured by
the spadices, that of Sabal minor is of about the diameter of a finger at
the base, that of S. Deeringiana about the diameter of a forearm.
284
rence of this palm within its geographic range, at least nine out of
ten of those questioned will answer that they have not seen it.
Occasionally one gets a reaction put this way, " Oh, you mean the
palmetto with a stem" ( or " trunk"). Hence we adopt this
phrase as an English name and term Sabal Deeringiana, " Pal-metto-
with- a- trunk."
JOHN K. SMALL.
McKELVEY'S THE LILAC
A MUCH- NEEDED MONOGRAPH
The lilac season of 1929 has demanded a first view of the new
Hlac monograph1 by Mrs. Susan Delano McKelvey. Previous
seasons have caused the search for suitable references, to help in
maintaining lilac collections, but the only aid of value was a long
catalogue list of W. E. Marshall & Co., aided by other lists con­taining
a few varieties not in the first. With the aid of this pres­ent
work the collection of nearly 200 varieties in The New York
Botanical Garden is being checked and revised. Horticulturally,
the important points in such a monograph are the separation of
the Giraldi hybrids, such as the early- flowering Lamartine, Mira-beau,
Pascal, Descartes, and others, the distinguishing of the tree
and the late- flowering species, the Chinese or Rouen, and the
various other species which have been found to be parents of
hybrids or which may be of use to the hybridists in the future.
The main groups of the modern lilacs are varieties of Syringa
vulgaris, a species of southern Europe. These have all been as­sembled
for the first time in Mrs. McKelvey's monograph. About
500 names of varieties, mostly French of Lemoine origin, with a
few others which have been taken into gardens such as Spain's
excellent white variety, Frau Bertha Dammann, Koster's purple
single variety Hugo Koster or the white single Princess Alex­andra,
which was introduced by Ellwanger and Barry, are listed
under Syringa vidgaris. As the result of seven years'' work Mrs.
McKelvey has assembled all the available knowledge that has been
published or could be secured by correspondence with various
experts in this and other countries and has added uniform de-
1 McKelvey, Susan Delano. The Lilac. 410. Pp. I- XVI+ 1- 581-
pis. 1- 171. New York, 1928. The Macmillan Co.
285
scriptions with exact Ridgway colors for bud outside, open flower,
and inside open flower, these to compare with designated colors
on charts selected from the Ridgway plates and included in the
volume, handy for use in the field. The New York Botanical
Garden has changed the names of long- doubtful varieties, such
as Godron ( Godroy) and Mireille ( Merveille), to conform to this
list as corrected by Mrs. McKelvey and the varieties can now be
checked from time to time by this comprehensive work. There
are five or six single white- flowered varieties in our collection and
six or seven double white ones, and it will be interesting to see
how the nomenclature will work out on these so closely similar
forms.
An even more intense study and more complete description and
assemblage of botanical, historical and horticultural notes is pre­sented
by Mrs. McKelvey for the species. As an example, the
Hungarian lilac Syringa Josikaea has more than two pages of
bibliography, to say nothing of twenty- three pages of other inter­esting
information about this species.
KENNETH R. BOYNTON
BROCKMANN- JEROSCH'S DIE VEGETATION DER
SCHWEIZ
With the publication of the fourth part in March, 1929, the first
volume of the Vegetation of Switzerland1 is completed. The
volume is devoted wholly to a careful and remarkably compre­hensive
exposition of the environment of the Swiss vegetation.
The soils, of which numerous types exist, receive 66 pages of dis­cussion,
and 177 pages are devoted to the rainfall. In this the
influence of the Alps is pronounced, both on the quantity and
distribution of precipitation, which ranges from less than 600 mm.
to more than 3000 mm., in general increasing with the altitude.
Snow falls in all parts of the country and in the higher altitudes
exercises a great influence on plant life. The next 142 pages
1 Brockmann- Jerosch, H. Die Vegetation der Schweiz. Beitrage zur
geobotanischen Landesaufnahme 12. Pages 409; 102 fig., 8 pi., 7 charts,
3 maps. Published by the Pflanzengeographische Kommission der
Schweizerischen Natur forschenden Gesellschaft, Bern, Verlag Hans
Huber, 1925- 1929. Price 36 francs. ^ ,
286
present the conditions of temperature. Low temperatures at
high elevations set climatic limits to the altitudes reached by the
flora, and it is interesting to note that Swiss plants may show in­jury
or even be killed by too high temperatures. A discussion
of the winds follows with 74 pages; local winds depending on
the configuration of the mountains are an important feature and
some of them, especially the f'ohn, are of considerable importance
to plants. The volume closes with a series of indexes. The
large maps showing the rain- fall, the height of the tree- line on the
mountains, and the types of agriculture are very detailed and are
excellent examples of the map- makers art.
H. A. GLEASON.
PUBLIC LECTURES DURING NOVEMBER
Following is the program of the free illustrated lectures given
in the Museum Building of The New York Botanical Garden on
Saturday afternoons, during November, beginning at four o'clock.
Nov. 2. " The Ten Commandments of Rose Growing," Mr.
J. H. Nicolas, Rose Specialist.
Nov. 9. " New Plants and Flowers for Home Gardens," Mr.
Kenneth R. Boynton, Head Gardener.
Nov. 16. " Chrysanthemums," Mr. Charles H. Totty, Nursery­man
and Florist.
Nov. 23. " Frost and Snow Crystals," Mr. Wilson A. Bentley.
Nov. 30. " Bermuda," Dr. Fred J. Seaver, Curator.
NOTES, NEWS, AND COMMENT
Professor C. H. Ostenfeld, Director of the Botanical Garden
at Copenhagen, Denmark, and Mrs. Ostenfeld, visited The New
York Botanical Garden on October 17, as guests of Doctor and
Mrs. Britton. Professor Ostenfeld is prosecuting investigations
upon the floras of high boreal regions of Europe, Asia, and North
America; he consulted, while here, with Doctor Rydberg con­cerning
types of species from Alaska and British North America.
At a special 175th anniversary convocation of Columbia Uni­versity,
held on October 31, numerous honorary degrees were
conferred, including doctorates on four members of the Board
287
of Scientific Directors of The New York Botanical Garden. The
recipients and their citations, as given by President Nicholas
Murray Butler, are as follows:
" Charles Peter Berkey, B. S., Minnesota, 1892; Ph. D., 1897, Pro­fessor
of Geology— Finely following in the footsteps of New­berry
and Kemp; truly was it forecast of him by Job of old:
Speak to the earth and it shall teach thee Sc. D."
" Marston Taylor Bogert, A. B., Columbia, 1890, Professor of
Organic Chemistry— Lifelong teacher and leader of research
in this university, carrying its message of scholarly helpful­ness
and distinction through numberless channels of profes­sional
association and communication at home and abroad,
illustrating Pope's lines in all but the adjective:
The starving chemist in his golden views, Supremely
blest Sc. D."
" Robert Aimer Harper, A. B., Oberlin, 1886; Ph. D., Bonn, 1896,
Torrey Professor of Botany—
No daintie flower or herbe that growes on ground,
No arborette with painted blossoms drest,
And smelling sweete, but there he might be found.. . Sc. D."
" Henry Hurd Rusby, M. D., University Medical College of New
York, 1884— Professor of Materia Medica and Dean of the
College of Pharmacy— Honored and respected head of his
calling, who perhaps more than any other living man realizes
that
— mickle is the powerful grace that lies
In herbs, plants, stones and their true qualities Sc. D."
Meteorology for September. The maximum temperatures
recorded at The New York Botanical Garden for each week or
part of a week were: 970 on the 1st; gg° on the 3rd? 2&" on the
10th; 77° on the 16th; and 85" on the 26th. The minimum tem­peratures
recorded were 650 on the 7th; 490 on the 12th; 400 on
the 10th and the 21st; and 460 on the 24th. The total precipita­tion
for the month was 2.69 inches.
ACCESSIONS
LIBRARY ACCESSIONS DURING AUGUST, 1929, ( CONTINUED)
HEER, OSWALD VON. Beiirage zur fossilen Flora Spitzhergens. Gegrundet
auf die Sammlungen der schwedischen Expedition vom Jahre 1872 auf
1873 . . . mit einem Anhang . . . von Prof. A. E. Nordenskiold.
Stockholm, 1876.
288
• . Beitrage zur miocenen Flora von Sachalin. Stockholm, 1878.
• . Flora fossilis alaskana. Stockholm, 1869.
. Fossile Flora der Baren Inset. Stockholm, 1871.
. Nachtrdge zur fossilen Flora Gronlands. Stockholm, 1880.
-. Ueber fossile Pfianzen von Novaja Semlja. Stockholm, 1878.
HOLL, KARL. Oekologie der Peridineen. Jena, 1928.
ILTIS, HUGO. Gregor Johann Mendel: Leben, Werk und Wirkung. Berlin,
1924.
JANKE, ALEXANDER. Allgemeine technische Mikrobiologie. 1. Teil. Die
Mikro- organismen. Dresden, 1924.
KISSEK, JOSEF. Leitfaden der botanischen Mikrotechnik. Jena, 1926.
KLEIN, GUSTAV, & STREBINGER, ROBERT. Fortschritte der Mikrochemie in
ihren verschieden Anwendungsgebieten. Leipzig, 1928.
KOSTYTSCHEW, SERGIUS. Lehrbuch der Pfianzenphysiologie. Vol. I.
Chemische Physiologic. Berlin, 1926.
LEPESCHKIN, WLADIMIR. Lehrbuch der Pfianzenphysiologie auf physika-lisch-
chemischer Grundlage. Berlin, 1925.
LINDAU, GUSTAV, ED. Kryptogamenflora fur Anf'dnger. Ed. 2, Vol. 3.
Die Flechien von G. Lindau. Berlin, 1923; Vol. 5. Die Laubmoose
von Wilhelm Lorch. Berlin, 1923; Vol. 6 [ pt. 1]. Die Torf- und
Lebermoose von Wilhelm Lorch. Berlin, 1926; Vol. 6 [ pt. 2]. Die
Farnpfianzen von H. Andres. Berlin, 1926.
. Ed. 3, Vol. 1. Die hoheren Pilze von Eberhard Ulbrich. Ber­lin,
1928.
LUNDEGARDH, HENRIK GUNNAR. Klima und Boden in ihrer Wirkung aus
das Pflanzenleben. Jena, 1925.
LUNDGREN, SVEN ANDERS BERNHARD. Om nagra vdxter fran den Stenkols-fdrande
Formationen i nordvestra Skane. [ Lund, 1872.]
MARKGRAF, FRIEDRICH. Kleines Praktikum der Vegetationskunde. Berlin,
1926.
MELIN, ELIAS. Untersuchungen uber die Bedeutung der Baummykorrhiza.
Jena, 1925.
MOLLER, FRIEDRICH ALFRED GUSTAV JOBST. Der Waldbau; Vorlesungen
fur Hochschul- Studenten. Vol. 1. Ed. by Helene Moller & Erhard
Hausendorff. Berlin, 1929.
MOLLER, HJALMAR AUGUST. Bidrag till Bornholms fossila flora ( Rh'dt
och Lias). Gymnospermer. Stockholm, 1903.
. Bidrag till Bornholms fossila flora. Pteridofyter. Lund, 1902.
MOLISCH, HANS. Im Lande der aufgehenden Sonne. Wien, 1927.
. Pfianzenphysiologie als Theorie der Gartnerei. Ed. 5. Jena,
1922.
NATHORST, ALFRED GABRIEL. Bilder ur forntidens vaxtverj^ Stpckholm,
1877. ^ _ -;-
. Contributions a la flore fossile du Japan. Stoclcholm, 1883.
. Die oberdevonische Flora des Etlesmere- Landes. Kristiania,
1904.
MEMBERS OF T H E CORPORATION
Edward D. Adams
Vincent Astor
F. L. Atkins
John W. Auchincloss
George F. Baker
Stephen Baker
Henry de Forest Baldwin
Sherman Baldwin
Edmund L. Baylies
Prof. Charles P. Berkey
C. K. G. Billings
George Blumenthal
Marston T. Bogert
George P. Brett
George S. Brewster
Prof. N. L. Britton
Dr. Nicholas M. Butler
Prof. W. H. Carpenter
Marin Le Brun Cooper
James W. Cromwell
Henry W. de Forest
Robert W. de Forest
Rev. Dr. H. M. Denslow
Thomas A. Edison
Benjamin T. Fairchild
William C. Ferguson
Marshall Field
William B. 0 . Field
Childs Frick
Daniel Guggenheim
Murry Guggenheim
Edward S. Harkness
Prof. R. A. Harper
T. A. Havemeyer
A. Heckscher
Hon. Joseph P. Hennessy
Frederick Trevor Hill
Anton G. Hodenpyl
Marshall A. Howe
Archer M. Huntington
Adrian Iselin
Walter Jennings
Otto H. Kahn
Darwin P. Kingsley
Clarence Lewis
Adolph Lewisohn
Frederick J. Lisman
Kenneth K. Mackenzie
Parker McCollester
V. Everit Macy
Edgar L. Marston
W. J. Matheson
George McAneny
John L. Merrill
Hon. Ogden L. Mills
Samuel Mofntt
H. de la Montagne, Jr.
Barrington Moore
J. Pierpont Morgan
Dr. Lewis R. Morris
Dr. Robert T. Morris
Hugh Neill
Eben E. Olcott
Prof. Henry F. Osborn
Chas. Lathrop Pack
Rufus L. Patterson
Henry Phipps
F. R. Pierson
James R. Pitcher
H. Hobart Porter
Johnston L. Redmond
Ogden Mills Reid
John D. Rockefeller
W. Emlen Roosevelt
Prof. H. H. Rusby
Hon. George J. Ryan
Dr. Reginald H. Sayre
Mortimer L. Schiff
Henry A. Siebrecht
John K. Small
Valentine P. Snyder
James Speyer
J. E. Spingarn
Frederick Strauss
F. K. Sturgis
B. B. Thayer
Charles G. Thompson
Robert Thorne
Louis C. Tiffany
Felix M. Warburg
Paul M. Warburg
Allen Wardwell
H. H. Westinghouse
Bronson Winthrop
Grenville L. Winthrop
MEMBERS OF THE ADVISORY COUNCIL
Mrs. Arthur H. Scribner, Mrs.
Chairman Mrs.
Mrs. Edward C. Bodman. Mrs.
Secretary Mrs.
Mrs. Robert Bacon Mrs.
Miss Elizabeth Billings Mrs.
Mrs. Andrew Carnegie Mrs.
Mrs. Diaries D. Dickey Mrs.
Mrs. John W. Draper Mrs.
Mrs. Carl A. de Gersdorff Mrs.
Miss Elizabeth S. Hamilton Mrs.
Mrs. A. Barton Hepburn
Robert C. Hill Mrs.
Frederick C. Hodgdon Mrs.
Walter Jennings Mrs.
Bradish Johnson Mrs.
Delancey Kane Mrs.
Gustav E. Kissel Mrs.
William A. Lockwood Mrs.
David Ives Mackie Mrs.
John R. McGinley Mrs.
Roswell Miller Mrs.
Wheeler H. Peckham Mrs.
Mrs.
George W. Perkins
Harold I. Pratt
Wm. Kelly Prentice
James Roosevelt
Samuel Sloan
Charles H. Stout
Theron G. Strong
Henry 0. Taylor
John T. Terr}-
Harold McL. Turner
Louise Beebe Wilder
William H. Woodin
HONORARY MEMBER OF THE ADVISORY COUNCIL
Mrs. E. Henry Harriman
G E N E R A L I N F O R M A T I ON
Some of the leading features of T h e New York Botanical Garden
a r e :
Four hundred acres of beautifully diversified land in the northern part
of the City of New York, through which flows the Uronx River. A native
hemlock forest is one of ihe features of the tract.
Plantations of thousands of native and introduced trees, shrubs, and
flowering1 plants.
Gardens, including a beautiful rose garden, a rock garden of rock-loving
plants, and fern and herbaceous gardens.
Greenhouses, containing thousands of interesting plants from America
and foreign countries.
Flower shows throughout the year— in the spring, summer, and autumn
displays of narcissi, daffodils, tulips, irises, peonies, roses, lilies, wai « i
lilies, gladioli, dahlias, and chrysanthemums; in the winter displays of
greenhouse- blooming plants.
A museum, containing exhibits of fossil plants, existing plant families,
local plants occurring within one hundred miles of ' he City of New Yuili,
and the economic uses of plants,
An herbarium, comprising more than one million specimens of Amer­ican
and foreign species.
Exploration in different parts of tlie United States, the West Indies,
Central and South America, for the study and collection of the character­istic
flora.
Scientific research in laboratories and in the field into the diversified
problems of plant life.
A library of botanical literature, comprising more I hau 3^, 000 \ n « > Y-.
and numerous pamphlets.
Public lectures on a great variety of botanical topics, continuing
throughout the year.
Publications on botanical subjects, partly of technical, scientific and
partly of popular, interest.
The education of school children and the public through the above
features and the giving of free information on botanical, horticultural,
and forestal subjects.
T h e Garden is dependent upon an annual appropriation by the
City of New York, private benefactions and membership fees. It
possesses now nearly two thousand members, and applications for
membership are always welcome. The classes of membership are!
Benefactor single contribution $ 25,000
Patron single contribution ',,<">"
Fellow for Life single contribution 1,000
Member for Life single contribution 250
Fellowship Member annual fee 100
Sustaining Member annual fee 25
Annual Member annual fee 10
Contributions to the OitrcJeu miiy be oV(] uH. ei] from taxable Incomes.
The following is an approved form of bequest:
I hereby bequeath to The New York Botanical ( Jarden incorporated under
the LOWS of New York, Chapter % Hf> Of IX'.)}, the Hum of
All requests for f u r t h e r information should be sent to
T H E N E W YORK BOTANICAL GARDEN
IJRONX PARK, N EW YORK CITY

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VOL. XXX NOVEMBER, 1929 No. 359
JOURNAL
OF
THE NEW YORK BOTANICAL GARDEN
THE SHRUB YELLOW- ROOT
N. L. BRITTON
THE DEVELOPMENT OF SEEDLESS FRUITS BY BREEDING
A. B. STOUT
PALMETTO- WITH- A- STEM— SABAL DEERINGIANA
JOHN K. SMALL
McKELVEY'S THE LILAC
KENNETH R. BOYNTON
BROCKMANN- JEROSCH'S DIE VEGETATION DER SCHWEIZ
H. A. GLEASON
PUBLIC LECTURES DURING NOVEMBER
NOTES, NEWS, AND COMMENT
ACCESSIONS
PUBLISHED FOR THE GARDEN
AT LIME AND GEEEN STREETS, LANCASTER, PA.
THE SCIENCE PRESS PRINTING COMPANY
Entered at the post- office in Lancaster, Pa., as second- class matter.
Annual subscription $ 1.00 Single copies 10 cents
Free to members of the Garden
THE NEW YORK BOTANICAL GARDEN
BOARD OF MANAGERS
HENRY W. DE FOREST, President R. A. HARPER
HENRY DE FOREST BALDWIN, Vice President JOSEPH P. HENNESSY
F. K. STURGIS, Vice President ADOLPH LEWISOHN
JOHN L. MERRILL, Treasurer D. T. MACDOUGAL
H. DE LA MONTAGNE, JR., Acting Secretary KENNETH K. MACKENZIE
EDWARD D. ADAMS PARKER MCCOLLESTER
SHERMAN BALDWIN BARRINGTON MOORE
CHARLES P. BERKEY J. P. MORGAN
MARSTON T. BOGERT LEWIS RUTHERFURD MORRIS
GEORGE S. BREWSTER HUGH NEILL
N. L. BRITTON H. HOBART PORTER
NICHOLAS MURRAY BUTLER HENRY H. RUSBY
ROBERT W. DE FOREST GEORGE J. RYAN
H. M. DENSLOW MORTIMER L. SCHIFF
CHILDS FRICK ROBERT THORNE
JAMES J. WALKER, Mayor of the City of New York
WALTER R. HERRICK, President of the Department of Parks
SCIENTIFIC DIRECTORS
R. A. HARPER, P H . D., SC. D., Chairman H. M. DENSLOW, A. M., D. D.
CHARLES P. BERKEY, P H . D., Sc. D. D. T. MACDOUGAL, PH. D., LL. D.
MARSTON T. BOGERT, SC. D., LL. D. BARRINGTON MOORE, A. B., M. F.
NICHOLAS MURRAY BUTLER, P H . D., HENRY H. RUSBY, M. D., Sc D.
LL. D., LITT. D. GEORGE J. RYAN, LL. D.
DIRECTOR EMERITUS
N. L. BRITTON, P H . D , Sc. D., LL. D.
GARDEN STAFF
MARSHALL A. HOWE, P H . D., Sc. D Acting Director- in- Chief
JOHN K. SMALL, P H . D., Sc. D Head Curator of the Museums
A. B. STOUT, P H . D Director of the Laboratories
P. A. RYDBERG, P H . D Curator
H. A. GLEASON, P H . D Curator
FRED. J. SEAVER, P H . D Curator
ARTHUR HOLLICK, P H . D Paleobotanist
BERNARD O. DODGE, P H . D Plant Pathologist
FORMAN T. MCLEAN, M. F., P H . D Supervisor of Public Education
JOHN HENDLEY BARNHART, A. M., M. D Bibliographer
PERCY WILSON Associate Curator
PALMYRE DE C. MITCHELL Associate Curator
SARAH H. HARLOW, A. M Librarian
H. H. RUSBY, M. D Honorary Curator of the Economic Collections
ELIZABETH G. BRITTON Honorary Curator of Mosses
MARY E. EATON Artist
ROBERT S. WILLIAMS Administrative Assistant
E. J. ALEXANDER Assistant Curator
ALBERT C. SMITH, A. B Assistant Curator
CLYDE CHANDLER, A. M Technical Assistant
KENNETH R. BOYNTON, B. S Head Gardener
H. M. DENSLOW, A. M., D. D Honorary Custodian of Local Herbarium
E. B. SOUTHWICK, P H . D Custodian of Herbaceous Grounds
ETHEL ANSON S. PECKHAM. Honorary Curator, Iris and Narcissus Collections
JOHN R. BRINLEY, C. E Landscape Engineer
WALTER S. GROESBECK Clerk and Accountant
ARTHUR J. CORBETT Superintendent of Buildings and Grounds
JOURNAL
OF
The New York Botanical Garden
VOL. XXX NOVEMBER, 1929 No. 359
THE SHRUB YELLOW- ROOT
This low shrub, the only known species of the genus Xan-thorhiza,
has long been of great interest to botanists, pharmacists,
and horticulturists. The wood of its long, slender rootstocks is
bright yellow and bitter; its long- stalked, pinnately compound
leaves are attractive and for a shrub unusual, clustered at the ends
of short, usually or often unbranched stems, with shining, ovate,
toothed, or incised segments; the very small, brownish- purple
flowers are borne in slender, drooping, compound racemes or
panicles, appearing in April or May, while the leaves are unfold­ing,
and are succeeded by small heads of inflated, yellowish,
i- seeded follicles. It was discovered in Georgia by John Bartram
in 1760, and subsequently grown by him in his garden, and intro­duced
into England by John Bush in 1766; there is some evidence
to indicate, however, that it may have been known to Banister, in
Virginia, many years previously.
The plant is from one to four feet high and grows naturally in
woodlands, from western New York to Kentucky, eastern Texas,
Virginia, and Florida, and has often been brought into gardens in
the eastern United States, where it grows luxuriantly and per­sistently,
as also in northern Europe. It does not appear to have
any natural enemies, being in this respect like some other mono­types,
doubtless having come through an enormous geological
time period, with all its immediate relatives lost, and itself become
resistant or unadapted to serious insect or fungus depredations.
Dr. Hollick has been unable to find any fossil species described,
however. Dr. Seaver tells me that one minute species of para­sitic
fungus, Phyllosticta Xanthorhisae, forming small spots, has-been
described on its leaves from West Virginia. Its natural
265
266
range as far west as Texas has been overlooked or doubted by n
cent authors, although recorded by Torrey and Gray in 184
( Flora of North America 1: 40). It may not exist in Texas nov
but proof that it did in 1837, is had by a specimen preserved i
Dr. Torrey's herbarium sent to him by Dr. Leavenworth, with
letter dated August 3, 1837, labelled as collected by Dr. Veatch <
Zavalla, Texas. I am indebted to Dr. Barnhart for calling my al
tention to this letter.
Most botanical authors have included the plant in the Crowfoc
Family ( Ranunculaceae), its floral structure being regarded a
more nearly in that affinity than elsewhere, perhaps as near th
Baneberries ( Actaea) as any other existing genus, and its foliag
somewhat resembles that of those plants, but its fruit is widel
different, as also its shrubby habit of growth. This affinity ha
not been undisputed, however, as by J. U. Lloyd and C. G. LI
in " Drugs and Medicines of North America " 1: 291- 304 ( ii
where it is maintained that it is better included in the Barbe:
Family ( Berberidaceae), its rootstocks being said to be so nearT;
like those of the Oregon Grapes, Berberis repens and Berberi
Aquifolium ( Odostemon species) that they could be substitutei
in commerce, and the yellow coloring matter had been shown a
long ago as 1862 to be the bitter alkaloid berberine.
The floral structure of the Crowfoot and the Barberry Familie
is closely similar, but this plant seems to be no more at home witl
Barberries than it is with Buttercups. It would not be surprisinj
if- some author should propose classifying Xanthorhiza in a fam
ily by itself, and thus further emphasize its high specialization
grouping it between Ranunculaceae and Berberidaceae. Plant!
were established in the Fruticetum at The New York Botanica
Garden in 1896, obtained from the nursery of Thomas Meehai
and Sons at Germantown, Pennsylvania, and have been persisten
and luxuriant ever since; the colony there has required trimming
from time to time to keep it from over- spreading; it is now ;
dense mass about eight feet in diameter, located a short distanci
north of the west end of the Long Bridge, near various species 0:
Berberis and Odostemon ( Berberidaceae), grouped to illustrati
the'Buttercup Family ( Ranunculaceae).
The Boulder Bridge, south of the Long Bridge, was built u
1907; in constructing the path across it small and rather shallov
267
planting pockets were provided on both sides, and knowing that
the Xanthorhissa grew naturally in Virginia in rocky woodlands,
it was planted in these pockets, where it has persisted luxuriantly
on the southern side, but less so and somewhat broken and dam­aged
by trampling on the northern side, where it is fully exposed
to the sun. It has also been used effectively at places in back­grounds
for the flower- gardens around Conservatory Range No. 1.
FIGURE I. The Yellow- root, Xanthorhisa simplicissima, growing on the
Boulder Bridge, in The New York Botanical Garden, from a photograph by
Miss Griffith.
Medicinally it is not now regarded as of importance, although
as a drug it was given prominence in the earlier pharmaceutical
literature of the United States, but discarded from the United
States Pharmacopoeia in the edition of 1880.
Bibliographically, this plant has recently been brought into
prominence by Mr. T. A. Sprague in " Bulletin of Miscellaneous
Information," of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, England,
1929: 235, 236, where, characterizing it as aberrant, he points out
268
that the botanical name Zanthorhiza apiifolia given to it by
L'Heritier, and used for it by nearly all authors under Zantho­rhiza
or Xanthorhiza must, by the application of the nomencla­torial
rule calling for the use of the earliest published specific
name be abandoned in favor of Xanthorhiza simplicissima Mar­shall.
Marshall's " Arbustum Americanum," where the genus
and species are described on page 167, was without doubt pub­lished
as a small octavo volume late in 1785. L'Heritier's " Stir­pes
Novae aut minus Cognitae," an illustrated folio volume, bears
the date 1784 on the title- page, but this is erroneous, because it
was published in seven fascicles, and fascicle 4, in which Zan­thorhiza
apiifolia was described on page 79, and beautifully illus­trated
on plate 38, although bearing the date 1785, was not pub­lished
until March, 1788, as recorded by Britten and Woodward
in 1905 ( Journal of Botany 43 : 267), a decision accepted by Mr.
Sprague and also by Dr. Barnhart as correct, but not taken up by
authors, all of us having hesitated for one reason or another. It
thus appears that we must henceforth use the name Xanthorhiza
simplicissima Marshall.
Marshall, perhaps, thought that L'Heritier had the priority, be­cause
there is in Dr. Torrey's herbarium, deposited at The New
York Botanical Garden, a well- preserved specimen of the plant,
collected in Marshall's garden, near Westchester, Pennsylvania,
on May 12, 1827, thus over 102 years old, labelled Xanthorhiza
apiifolia.
It is of interest to note, that in " Drugs and Medicines of North
America," above cited, it is maintained that simplicissima is the
right name to use, the false date on the title- page of L'Heritier's
work being there discussed, thus anticipating Mr. Sprague's re­sult
by 43 years; caustic criticism of the French author is there
indulged in, perhaps without forethought, because while the title-page
of " Drugs and Medicines of North America " bears date
1884- 1885, its last part, containing the learned account of Xan­thorhiza
is dated March, 1886!
In " Botanisher Jahrbiicher" 16: 319, 320, published in 1.892,
Herr Huth gives an account and description of the genus and
species, with reference to the contribution by Messrs. Lloyd, and
describes a variety ternata, having simply ternate leaves, the leaf­lets
cuneate- based and with entire lobes, founded on a specimen
269
in the herbarium of Portenschlag, preserved in the imperial her­barium
at Vienna; we have not seen foliage agreeing with this
description. Huth's orthography is Xanthorrhiza apiifolium;
under the geographic distribution of the genus he erroneously
cites the range from Carolina to New York as in the Pacific region
of North America, but has it correct, as Atlantic, in his account
of the species.
The generic name Xanthorhiza is Greek, with reference to the
yellow wood; perhaps the spelling Xanthorrhiza, favored by sev­eral
authors, as by Mr. Leggett in 1870 ( Bulletin of the Torrey
Botanical Club 1: 14) will be regarded as preferable, although
departing from Marshall's original spelling; it thus appears in
Britton & Brown's " Illustrated Flora of the Northern States and
Canada," as Judge Brown followed Mr. Leggett's dictum.
The specific name simplicissima refers to the simple, often or
nearly unbranched stems; it is not quite definite, however, because
on plants three or four feet high, there are often two to five
branches near the top; apiifolia is with reference to the resem­blance
of its leaves to those of Parsley, which is not very close,
and the plant has also been called Parsley- leaved Yellow- root.
The specific name tinctoria, referring to the yellow pigment, was
maintained for it by Dr. Woodhouse in 1802 ( Medical Repository
5: 159), because he did not regard either of the others as accu­rately
descriptive; it may be remarked, finally, that prior to Mar­shall's
botanical descriptions of the genus and species in 1785, the
plant had been designated Marbosia tinctoria, probably by its dis­coverer,
John Bartram, but no botanical publication of this, its
oldest name, appears to have been effected ( see Drugs and Medi­cines
of North America 1: 294).
N. L. BRITTON.
270
THE DEVELOPMENT OF SEEDLESS FRUITS BY
BREEDING1
At the present time there is no seedless fruit among the tree,
vine, or small fruits of out- door culture that is grown in commer­cial
proportions in the State of New York. We may therefore
ask ourselves in which of our various fruits will it be of advan­tage
to have seedless kinds, and in which of these will it be pos­sible
to obtain such varieties. In other words, do we want seed­less
fruits, and, if we do, can we have what we want?
Nearly 40 years ago ( 1890) Dr. E. Lewis Sturtevant, who had
shortly before retired as the first Director of this State Experi­ment
Station where we are guests today, wrote a paper summa­rizing
much historical and horticultural lore regarding the occur­rence
of seedless fruits. 2 We need not spend the time today to
review the list of such plants mentioned in that paper and in more
recent horticultural and botanical records. We may, however,
note that seedless or near- seedless fruits have appeared in such a
wide variety of plants that the development of such fruits seems
possible for any fleshy fruit.
It is worth our notice and reflection to recall that some of the
world's most important fruits are seedless. Seedless bananas,
especially of the Gros Michel clon, the Washington Navel Orange,
and various of the seedless pineapples are to be purchased in
quantity in season at almost any fruit shop and grocery store
throughout the entire United States. The Sultanina or Thomp­son
seedless grape is one of the world's most important raisin
grapes, and in recent years it is also being widely eaten as a table
grape. The seedless bread- fruits are valuable foods in the tropics.
The near- seedless Marsh grape fruit and the Eureka lemon are
the elite fruits of their respective kinds. The commercial culture
of the seedless persimmons is rapidly being extended in California.
Other tropical fruits, seedless or near- seedless, could be men­tioned,
which have much promise. Seedless fruits rank high in
tropical and subtropical horticulture.
1A paper presented to The New York State Fruit Testing Associa­tion
at its Eleventh Annual Meeting, which was held at the New York
Agricultural Experiment Station, Geneva, N. Y., September 19 and 20,
1929.
2 On Seedless Fruits. Memoirs Torrey Botanical Club 1: 141- 185.
27I
When we turn out attention to the crops widely grown in our
temperate region, we note that seedless or near- seedless fruits
have long been known in the apple, in the pear, and among certain
of the stone fruits and the small fruits, and that plants bearing
seedless berries have rather frequently appeared among the seed­lings
of our hardy grapes. But in none of these has any plant
given seedless fruit of size, quality, and productiveness to the de-
FIGURE 2. The flowers of the apetalous or navel apples have no petals
and no stamens. Since the flowers are green, a tree of this type is some­times
erroneously called " bloomless." Green sepals are present and the
number of styles is usually nearly double the normal number of five.
With proper pollination some seeds will develop.
gree that has satisfied the standards of horticulture. In our vege­table
fruits, however, some of the best of the eggplants, cucum­bers,
and tomatoes are seedless, or are at least near- seedless.
Plants bearing seedless or near- seedless fruits have arisen and
will " continue to arise as variations among the seedlings: that are
272
grown. In general, our horticultural fruits have all been bred and
selected for increased size, together with quality; and along with
this development there has come very generally some reduction
in the total number of seeds, or at least there is a greater propor­tion
of pulp to the number of seeds than in the fruits of the wild
progenitors. Compared with the wild ancestors, the present hor­ticultural
fruits are greatly increased in size, and their develop­ment
is somewhat less dependent on the stimulus of seed forma­tion.
A seedless fruit is merely the last step in the evolution of
the fruit as a vegetative structure.
Most plants which bear seedless fruits may be used as parents
in breeding. Even seedless bananas produce some seeds to abun­dant
pollination. The Gros Michel banana is very susceptible to
the " Panama disease " but it is being crossed with bananas more
resistant or immune in the effort to combine in the progeny both
quality of fruit and resistance to disease. Seeds may be had
rather abundantly from pineapples and from the Washington
Navel orange by making proper cross- pollinations. The seedless
vinifera grapes have much good pollen and may hence be used as
male parents, and the near- seedless grapes may also be used as
female parents. The apetalous apples have no stamens and pollen
but they will yield seed to proper pollination.
Probably all of us will agree today that a good hardy seedless
grape would be highly desirable and valuable for culture in New-
York State. For 10 years The New York Botanical Garden has
cooperated with the Horticultural Department of this State Ex­periment
Station in a project of breeding which aims to develop
hardy seedless grapes of high quality. At the present time the
tender vinifera seedless varieties, Sultanina, Sultanina Rose, Sul­tana,
Panariti, Black Corinth, and Black Monukka, have all been
used as pollen parents in hybridizing with various hardy grapes.
A. considerable proportion of the seedlings from such crosses are
tender and die in the nursery, but a few have been hardy and by
continuing the work the total number of hardy seedlings obtained
has increased.
Of the grape seedlings from this breeding which have already
come into fruiting, one is of noteworthy promise. 3 The vine is.
3 Descriptions of this vine and a report on its parentage, illustrated
by photographs, have been given as follows: A New Seedless Grape.
Jour. N. Y. Botanical Garden 28: 20- 23. 1927. A New Hardy Seed­less
Grape. Jour. Heredity 19: 316- 323. 1928.
273
C £.
274
vigorous in growth, and it appears to be hardy here at Geneva.
In its second year of fruiting it bore 13 clusters of fruit. The
bunches are well- filled, strongly shouldered and the largest weigh
at least a pound. The berries are greenish white, or yellowish
when over- ripe, meaty, and vinous. The fruit is almost like that
of the well- known Sultanina extensively grown in California.
This year the parent vine was almost stripped of its flowers in
using the pollen for further breeding so we are unable to exhibit
today the best bunches which this plant is able to yield. We have,
however, several clusters weighing from 8 to 12 ounces here on
display. This vine is being propagated as rapidly as possible, and
in a few years vines will be distributed for trial. There is every
reason to believe that the methods we are using will give other
seedless grapes with hardiness of vine and excellent quality of
fruit.
Turning our attention to the tree fruits, it would seem that a
good seedless apple would be a desirable acquisition to pomology.
Seedless apples were known to the ancient Greeks and Romans
and for at least 350 years there have been frequent references in
horticultural literature to a curious apple which was reported to
have no blossoms and to bear fruit without core or seed. At least
two clonal varieties of such apples are now grown at this Station.
The flowers are without petals or stamens, and are hence reduced
almost to green branches. The fruits are often seedless, with
more or less compressed seed- chambers, but seeds may be present.
It is interesting and possibly important to note that the fruits are
what we may call " navel apples." There is at the apex a small
accessory or proliferated fruit of the same general nature as that
seen in the navel orange. Here we have an excessive vegetative
development of the main axis or stem of the flower. This char­acteristic
may prove to be an important one in the development of
seedless and parthenocarpic fruits. At any rate, it is one to which
the breeders of pome fruits may well give special attention.
A fully parthenocarpic apple or pear, like the navel orange,
would be self- fruitful even with no pollination whatever, and
hence in growing it the pollination problem would be removed
from the hazards of securing a crop of fruit. Possibly this char­acter,
already present to some degree in certain apples, may be de­veloped
further and combined with good quality, size, and pro-
275
276
ducdveness. Such fruits will be an improvement over the apple
varieties of today at least in being self- fruitful. A study of the
fruiting habits of these old clons of the apetalous or navel apples
is being made here at this Station and also breeding work with
them as seed parents is now under way here.
The references already made to the seedless grapes and the
navel apples illustrate how seedless or near- seedless types of fruit
which already exist may be used in breeding for further improve­ment.
We should indeed like to know the exact procedure of
nature's process in giving to mankind such splendid seedless
fruits as the Gros Michel banana, the Washington Navel orange,
and the Sultanina Seedless grape. Were these sudden and wide
deviations, the " mutations " of modern genetical parlance, or are
there some definite trends of development, or are there some­thing
like the so- called " complementary hereditary factors"
which, if we understood their behavior sufficiently, could be com­bined
in the production of seedless fruits? Undoubtedly, in the
growing of all sorts of horticultural plants from seed many indi­viduals
that produce seedless or near- seedless fruits are being dis­carded
and destroyed because the fruit lacks size, quality, or
productiveness. But such plants may indeed prove valuable for
use in selective breeding. The seed parent of our new hardy
seedless grape already mentioned is a near- seedless individual
that does not have bunches large enough to warrant propagation.
Ordinarily it would be discarded and destroyed.
Little attention has been paid to the breeding of our fruit crops
for seedlessness and we know very little of the inheritance of
seedlessness in these plants. But a study of seedless fruits shows
that there are various types of flowers and of fruits involved. It
does not appear that there is one simple principle of development
for all. In breeding these we need to understand how and to what
extent each of them may be used in breeding, to use our best com­mon
sense in selecting parents and in judging the offspring, and
to continue breeding unto the second and third generation, invok­ing
as moral support the aid of the most useful of the theories of
genetics.
The breeding of cucumbers conducted by Mr. Wellington, now
of this Agricultural Experiment Station, and his associates has
given results of special interest and of significance in relation to
277
the inheritance of seedlessness. Certain cucumbers, mostly En­glish
varieties used in hothouse culture, produce seedless fruits
without pollination, but if there is pollination, seeds are produced.
The fruits are hence parthenocarpic and the set of commercial
fruit is not dependent upon insect or hand pollination. In the
breeding work in question parthenocarpic and non- parthenocarpic
varieties were hybridized and the progenies were grown into sev­eral
generations by pedigreed breeding. There was much varia­tion
among the various generations in respect to seedlessness and
other characters, but by selective breeding a fully parthenocarpic
variety was again obtained. This variety, now named the Geneva
cucumber, possesses certain qualities different from either of the
parents used in the hybridization. Such results support the view
that the character of seedlessness is hereditary and that hybridiza­tion
and selective breeding is effective in combining seedlessness
with highly desirable qualities from different parents or even with
the expression of new qualities to give new clonal varieties of
merit. That careful selection of parents with reference to good
qualities in the crossing of seedless and near- seedless grapes may
give new seedless varieties of special merit has also been demon­strated
in our results with grapes.
It is unwise and certainly it is unnecessary to predict that seed­less
fruits will in time supplant the best of the seeded varieties in
the fruits grown commercially here in New York State. On the
other hand, it would be a lack of imagination on our part to in­sist
that excellent seedless varieties are not possible in many of
these fruits. Dame Nature has already provided many valuable
seedless fruits among tropical and sub- tropical plants, and in most
cases these have been propagated from ancient time. With the
greatly increased knowledge of today regarding plant- breeding
we should, it would seem, be able to help nature in the production
of excellent seedless fruits valuable . for temperate regions.
A. B. STOUT.
278
PALMETTO- WITH- A- STEM — SABAL DEERINGIANA
Field study lias not increased the number of our native palms
to the extent that it has added to some of our other genera, for
example, Iris and Opuntia, but the rather recent discovery of two
species of the genus Sabal, one in Florida and another in Louisi­ana,
thus adding two native palms to the native species heretofore
known in the continental United States is really a rather high per­centage
of increase.
The Florida palm referred to above, Sabal Jamesiana, has al­ready
been described in this journal. 1 Its geographic range has
not been materially extended, but it has been found in several ad­ditional
hammocks of the Everglade Keys. It grows in a thin
layer of sand on a rock foundation, with more or less humus in­termixed.
Its nourishment is scant. This fact is reflected in a
graceful palm with in no way great vigor or bulkiness.
On the other hand, Sabal Deeringiana grows in bottomless
gumbo with copious nourishment, which is reflected in a very
vigorous and bulky palm.
The'tenth of April, 1925, was to become botanically a memo­rable
day, for on it and almost simultaneously were discovered,
as far as number of species and variety of color is concerned, the
iris center of the world and a palm with a tall stout trunk in a
country where only a trunkless palmetto ( Sabal minor) was sup­posed
to exist.
Several years ago in scanning literature for references to palms
of the continental United States the following rather startling
reference was stumbled on. " It is also in the lower portion of
this belt [ Coastal Plain of Texas] ( where the palm tribe is rep­resented
by the Chamaerops Palmetto) that the Palmetto attains
a growth as gorgeous even as in the lower Mississippi; it extends
on the Rio Bravo [ Rio Grande] up to about 80 miles from the
gulf."
" In addition to the Palmetto common to the lower portions of
these two great rivers, . . ." 2
This reference to a gorgeous growth of cabbage- trees along the
lower Mississippi River had usually been taken, to say the least,
1 Journal of The New York Botanical Garden 28: 181- 185. 1927-
2 Arthur V. Schott, in Report, United States and Mexican Boundary
Survey I2: 44- 1857-
279
FIGURE 5. A medium- sized specimen of Sabal Deeringiana in the ham­mock
several hundred yards back of the shore- line of Lake Pontchartrain,
near Frenier Beach, about forty miles west of New Orleans. In this
case the complete leaves have fallen from the stem, thus leaving a naked
cylindric trunk. Spent flower- stalks ( spadices) may be seen extending
above the leaves. The tips of these have been broken off. The flower
_ stalks are often fully twice as long as the leaves and bear myriad flowers
and very numerous fruits.
28o
as an exaggerated statement, even up to the spring of 1925, On
the one hand the cabbage- tree ( Sabal Palmetto) had not been col­lected
or otherwise even been mentioned as growing within the
one thousand mile stretch between Saint Andrews Bay in Florida
to the mouth of the Rio Grande in Texas. On the other hand,
even a copious growth of the dwarf- palmetto ( Sabal minor) the
only palm then known to grow naturally in the lower Mississippi
delta would scarcely have been referred to as " gorgeous" by
Arthur Schott or compared by him to the cabbage- tree.
Field- work in the lower Mississippi delta by the writer subse­quent
to the spring of 1925, has convinced him that the extensive
engineering operations connected with the buildings of the levees
along both banks of the river utterly exterminated the palm
growth referred to by Schott. Arthur Schott3 made his observa-
3 Arthur Carl Victor Schott was born February 27, 1814, at Stuttgart,
Wurttemberg. He was educated in his native city, and at the institute
of agriculture in the neighboring village of Hohenheim. He then man­aged
various estates in Germany, and was for ten years in charge of a
mining property in Hungary. In 1848 he traveled through southern
Europe, Turkey, and Arabia. In 1850, already an accomplished linguist,
artist, and naturalist, he came to America, where he almost immediately
made the acquaintance of Professor John Torrey, of New York. In the
following year he was appointed a surveyor on the Mexican Boundary
Survey, and in September, 1851, sailed from New York to New Orleans,
and then proceeded overland, in company with C. C. Parry, to El Paso;
from San Antonio, J. M. Bigelow was also a member of the party. Schott
spent the entire year 1852 on or near the lower Rio Grande, with head­quarters
most of the time at Eagle Pass; some of his surveys were in a
region never since visited by a botanist. At first he collected plants on his
own account, but later he was officially authorized to collect not only plants
but also specimens in other branches of natural history. After a few
months, from February to April, in Washington and New York, he re­turned
to the field in May, 1853, going overland to New Orleans and across
country to the Rio Grande. Before the end of the year he was again in
Washington, working on official reports for the survey. Late in 1854 he
again took the field, at the western end of the Boundary, going by way of
the Isthmus to San Francisco, and returning down the coast to San Diego,
where he arrived about the first of November. Most of the year 1855 he
spent along the lower Colorado River and in Sonora, and in 1856 and 1857
was at Washington, still connected with the Boundary Survey. Late in
1857 he spent several months with a surveying party in the Atrato River
region of Colombia. After his return to Washington he remained in the
employ of this survey commission until the completion of its report in
1864. From- 1864 to 1866 he was in charge of an official geological survey
• 28i
tions about the middle of the last century, while the extensive
levee building occurred about the beginning of the last quarter of
that century. It is evident that neither the engineers in charge of
the levee work nor their associates were botanists, else some
record additional to Schott's original statement would have found
its way into print.
Had the study of our native palms been taken up seriously
before the end of the first quarter of this century, this striking
palm and its haunts would not have remained secret for three-quarters
of a century after Arthur Schott gave the clue to their
existence.
To meet with erect- stemmed palms hundreds of miles out of
the known geographic range of any such plant was a great sur­prise.
A first glance at the trees naturally suggested the cabbage-tree
( Sabal Palmetto). A second glance indicated something
quite different. This palm, although resembling the cabbage- tree
in habit, is really related to the blue- stem ( Sabal minor)— a giant
blue- stem.
Arthur Schott, like several other botanists, made a bad guess
concerning the identity of the palm in the delta of the Rio Grande
in Texas by reporting it as the cabbage- tree ( Sabal Palmetto).
This Texan palm, since Schott's time referred to Sabal mexicana,
and since this preliminary disposition of it described as Sabal
texana* is really a true cabbage- tree, distinct botanically from
the classic cabbage- tree ( Sabal Palmetto) but quite similar in
habit. On the semi- circular coast line of the Gulf States we find
two kinds of true cabbage- trees— Sabal Palmetto on the Florida
; Coastal Plain and Sabal texana on the Texas Coastal Plain. Al­though
now widely separated geographically and morphologically,
they may have sprung from a common ancestral type, and each
may once have had a wider geographic range. Midway in this
coastal region we find a palm of a quite different group of the
genus Sabal, but with the general habit of the cabbage- trees. In
for the, state of Yucatan, and while there collected nearly a thousand
plants. The remainder of his life was spent in the employ ' of-.. various
governmental bureaus in Washington, where he died July 26, 1875.—
JOHN HENDLEY BARNHART.
4 For a history of this palm see Journal of The New York Botanical
Garden 28: 132- 143. 1927.
282
FIGURE 6 A medium sized specimen of Sabal Deeringtana situated near
the one shown in FICURE 5 In this case the " boots,' as the clasping
leaf- bases are popularly termed, are persistent on the trunk The great
size of the leaf- blade is shown by a comparison of the drooping leaf-segment
and the two- foot machette standing at the base of the trunk.
The palm usually grows in places that are overflowed parts of the year.
This plant grew in a lower spot than that shown in FIGURE 5, as is evi­denced
by the mass of roots which form about trunk bases where water
stands for a considerable period.
283
addition to being intermediate in geographical distribution, this
palm is intermediate in morphological characters as regards the
true cabbages and the blue- stems5 or dwarf- palmettos. Sabal
Deeringiana is morphologically most closely related to Sabal
minor by the erect leaves, the stiff erect leaf- lobes, the flat leaf-blades
and the erect spadices, which exceed the leaves in length.
On the other hand, it resembles Sabal Palmetto by the erect trunk
with persistent or deciduous " boots," and the midrib, which ex­tends
into the leaf- blade for about one- third its diameter.
The two blue- stems�� dwarf and giant— may have descended
from the same ancestral palm. At the present time Sabal minor
is the most wide- spread of our native palms, while S. Deeringiana
is one of those with a very restricted geographic range. Where
it originated we cannot tell. It has certainly migrated to its pres­ent
haunts, for in its early history the present region it inhabits
was sea instead of land. Like many other plants of the lower
Mississippi delta, it has left no trace of its line or lines of mi­gration.
The geographic limits of Sabal Deeringiana are not yet per­fectly
known. It grows in swamps and along bayous in the lower
Mississippi delta. It has not been observed east of the Pearl
River, nor west of the Atchafalaya River.
Sabal Deeringiana is one of the massive palms. Its success in
eluding the eye of the botanist and the layman for over a century
and a quarter seems nothing short of mysterious. That a palm
with a massive trunk up to nearly two feet in diameter bearing a
crown of numerous leaves with blades up to six feet in diameter
and erect, feathery- branched flower- stalks up to eighteen feet
long, 6 growing naturally in a well- settled region, even nearly or
quite within the city limits of New Orleans, should have remained
botanically undiscovered until Anno Domino 1925 seems surpass­ing
belief. Yet more strange is the almost total ignorance of its
occurrence by residents who have spent nearly their whole life in
the region it inhabits. In answer to queries concerning the occur-
6 Stem in this case refers to the leaf- petioles, not to the stem or trunk
of the plant.
6 The relative massiveness of the two blue- stems may be measured by
the spadices, that of Sabal minor is of about the diameter of a finger at
the base, that of S. Deeringiana about the diameter of a forearm.
284
rence of this palm within its geographic range, at least nine out of
ten of those questioned will answer that they have not seen it.
Occasionally one gets a reaction put this way, " Oh, you mean the
palmetto with a stem" ( or " trunk"). Hence we adopt this
phrase as an English name and term Sabal Deeringiana, " Pal-metto-
with- a- trunk."
JOHN K. SMALL.
McKELVEY'S THE LILAC
A MUCH- NEEDED MONOGRAPH
The lilac season of 1929 has demanded a first view of the new
Hlac monograph1 by Mrs. Susan Delano McKelvey. Previous
seasons have caused the search for suitable references, to help in
maintaining lilac collections, but the only aid of value was a long
catalogue list of W. E. Marshall & Co., aided by other lists con­taining
a few varieties not in the first. With the aid of this pres­ent
work the collection of nearly 200 varieties in The New York
Botanical Garden is being checked and revised. Horticulturally,
the important points in such a monograph are the separation of
the Giraldi hybrids, such as the early- flowering Lamartine, Mira-beau,
Pascal, Descartes, and others, the distinguishing of the tree
and the late- flowering species, the Chinese or Rouen, and the
various other species which have been found to be parents of
hybrids or which may be of use to the hybridists in the future.
The main groups of the modern lilacs are varieties of Syringa
vulgaris, a species of southern Europe. These have all been as­sembled
for the first time in Mrs. McKelvey's monograph. About
500 names of varieties, mostly French of Lemoine origin, with a
few others which have been taken into gardens such as Spain's
excellent white variety, Frau Bertha Dammann, Koster's purple
single variety Hugo Koster or the white single Princess Alex­andra,
which was introduced by Ellwanger and Barry, are listed
under Syringa vidgaris. As the result of seven years'' work Mrs.
McKelvey has assembled all the available knowledge that has been
published or could be secured by correspondence with various
experts in this and other countries and has added uniform de-
1 McKelvey, Susan Delano. The Lilac. 410. Pp. I- XVI+ 1- 581-
pis. 1- 171. New York, 1928. The Macmillan Co.
285
scriptions with exact Ridgway colors for bud outside, open flower,
and inside open flower, these to compare with designated colors
on charts selected from the Ridgway plates and included in the
volume, handy for use in the field. The New York Botanical
Garden has changed the names of long- doubtful varieties, such
as Godron ( Godroy) and Mireille ( Merveille), to conform to this
list as corrected by Mrs. McKelvey and the varieties can now be
checked from time to time by this comprehensive work. There
are five or six single white- flowered varieties in our collection and
six or seven double white ones, and it will be interesting to see
how the nomenclature will work out on these so closely similar
forms.
An even more intense study and more complete description and
assemblage of botanical, historical and horticultural notes is pre­sented
by Mrs. McKelvey for the species. As an example, the
Hungarian lilac Syringa Josikaea has more than two pages of
bibliography, to say nothing of twenty- three pages of other inter­esting
information about this species.
KENNETH R. BOYNTON
BROCKMANN- JEROSCH'S DIE VEGETATION DER
SCHWEIZ
With the publication of the fourth part in March, 1929, the first
volume of the Vegetation of Switzerland1 is completed. The
volume is devoted wholly to a careful and remarkably compre­hensive
exposition of the environment of the Swiss vegetation.
The soils, of which numerous types exist, receive 66 pages of dis­cussion,
and 177 pages are devoted to the rainfall. In this the
influence of the Alps is pronounced, both on the quantity and
distribution of precipitation, which ranges from less than 600 mm.
to more than 3000 mm., in general increasing with the altitude.
Snow falls in all parts of the country and in the higher altitudes
exercises a great influence on plant life. The next 142 pages
1 Brockmann- Jerosch, H. Die Vegetation der Schweiz. Beitrage zur
geobotanischen Landesaufnahme 12. Pages 409; 102 fig., 8 pi., 7 charts,
3 maps. Published by the Pflanzengeographische Kommission der
Schweizerischen Natur forschenden Gesellschaft, Bern, Verlag Hans
Huber, 1925- 1929. Price 36 francs. ^ ,
286
present the conditions of temperature. Low temperatures at
high elevations set climatic limits to the altitudes reached by the
flora, and it is interesting to note that Swiss plants may show in­jury
or even be killed by too high temperatures. A discussion
of the winds follows with 74 pages; local winds depending on
the configuration of the mountains are an important feature and
some of them, especially the f'ohn, are of considerable importance
to plants. The volume closes with a series of indexes. The
large maps showing the rain- fall, the height of the tree- line on the
mountains, and the types of agriculture are very detailed and are
excellent examples of the map- makers art.
H. A. GLEASON.
PUBLIC LECTURES DURING NOVEMBER
Following is the program of the free illustrated lectures given
in the Museum Building of The New York Botanical Garden on
Saturday afternoons, during November, beginning at four o'clock.
Nov. 2. " The Ten Commandments of Rose Growing," Mr.
J. H. Nicolas, Rose Specialist.
Nov. 9. " New Plants and Flowers for Home Gardens," Mr.
Kenneth R. Boynton, Head Gardener.
Nov. 16. " Chrysanthemums," Mr. Charles H. Totty, Nursery­man
and Florist.
Nov. 23. " Frost and Snow Crystals," Mr. Wilson A. Bentley.
Nov. 30. " Bermuda," Dr. Fred J. Seaver, Curator.
NOTES, NEWS, AND COMMENT
Professor C. H. Ostenfeld, Director of the Botanical Garden
at Copenhagen, Denmark, and Mrs. Ostenfeld, visited The New
York Botanical Garden on October 17, as guests of Doctor and
Mrs. Britton. Professor Ostenfeld is prosecuting investigations
upon the floras of high boreal regions of Europe, Asia, and North
America; he consulted, while here, with Doctor Rydberg con­cerning
types of species from Alaska and British North America.
At a special 175th anniversary convocation of Columbia Uni­versity,
held on October 31, numerous honorary degrees were
conferred, including doctorates on four members of the Board
287
of Scientific Directors of The New York Botanical Garden. The
recipients and their citations, as given by President Nicholas
Murray Butler, are as follows:
" Charles Peter Berkey, B. S., Minnesota, 1892; Ph. D., 1897, Pro­fessor
of Geology— Finely following in the footsteps of New­berry
and Kemp; truly was it forecast of him by Job of old:
Speak to the earth and it shall teach thee Sc. D."
" Marston Taylor Bogert, A. B., Columbia, 1890, Professor of
Organic Chemistry— Lifelong teacher and leader of research
in this university, carrying its message of scholarly helpful­ness
and distinction through numberless channels of profes­sional
association and communication at home and abroad,
illustrating Pope's lines in all but the adjective:
The starving chemist in his golden views, Supremely
blest Sc. D."
" Robert Aimer Harper, A. B., Oberlin, 1886; Ph. D., Bonn, 1896,
Torrey Professor of Botany—
No daintie flower or herbe that growes on ground,
No arborette with painted blossoms drest,
And smelling sweete, but there he might be found.. . Sc. D."
" Henry Hurd Rusby, M. D., University Medical College of New
York, 1884— Professor of Materia Medica and Dean of the
College of Pharmacy— Honored and respected head of his
calling, who perhaps more than any other living man realizes
that
— mickle is the powerful grace that lies
In herbs, plants, stones and their true qualities Sc. D."
Meteorology for September. The maximum temperatures
recorded at The New York Botanical Garden for each week or
part of a week were: 970 on the 1st; gg° on the 3rd? 2&" on the
10th; 77° on the 16th; and 85" on the 26th. The minimum tem­peratures
recorded were 650 on the 7th; 490 on the 12th; 400 on
the 10th and the 21st; and 460 on the 24th. The total precipita­tion
for the month was 2.69 inches.
ACCESSIONS
LIBRARY ACCESSIONS DURING AUGUST, 1929, ( CONTINUED)
HEER, OSWALD VON. Beiirage zur fossilen Flora Spitzhergens. Gegrundet
auf die Sammlungen der schwedischen Expedition vom Jahre 1872 auf
1873 . . . mit einem Anhang . . . von Prof. A. E. Nordenskiold.
Stockholm, 1876.
288
• . Beitrage zur miocenen Flora von Sachalin. Stockholm, 1878.
• . Flora fossilis alaskana. Stockholm, 1869.
. Fossile Flora der Baren Inset. Stockholm, 1871.
. Nachtrdge zur fossilen Flora Gronlands. Stockholm, 1880.
-. Ueber fossile Pfianzen von Novaja Semlja. Stockholm, 1878.
HOLL, KARL. Oekologie der Peridineen. Jena, 1928.
ILTIS, HUGO. Gregor Johann Mendel: Leben, Werk und Wirkung. Berlin,
1924.
JANKE, ALEXANDER. Allgemeine technische Mikrobiologie. 1. Teil. Die
Mikro- organismen. Dresden, 1924.
KISSEK, JOSEF. Leitfaden der botanischen Mikrotechnik. Jena, 1926.
KLEIN, GUSTAV, & STREBINGER, ROBERT. Fortschritte der Mikrochemie in
ihren verschieden Anwendungsgebieten. Leipzig, 1928.
KOSTYTSCHEW, SERGIUS. Lehrbuch der Pfianzenphysiologie. Vol. I.
Chemische Physiologic. Berlin, 1926.
LEPESCHKIN, WLADIMIR. Lehrbuch der Pfianzenphysiologie auf physika-lisch-
chemischer Grundlage. Berlin, 1925.
LINDAU, GUSTAV, ED. Kryptogamenflora fur Anf'dnger. Ed. 2, Vol. 3.
Die Flechien von G. Lindau. Berlin, 1923; Vol. 5. Die Laubmoose
von Wilhelm Lorch. Berlin, 1923; Vol. 6 [ pt. 1]. Die Torf- und
Lebermoose von Wilhelm Lorch. Berlin, 1926; Vol. 6 [ pt. 2]. Die
Farnpfianzen von H. Andres. Berlin, 1926.
. Ed. 3, Vol. 1. Die hoheren Pilze von Eberhard Ulbrich. Ber­lin,
1928.
LUNDEGARDH, HENRIK GUNNAR. Klima und Boden in ihrer Wirkung aus
das Pflanzenleben. Jena, 1925.
LUNDGREN, SVEN ANDERS BERNHARD. Om nagra vdxter fran den Stenkols-fdrande
Formationen i nordvestra Skane. [ Lund, 1872.]
MARKGRAF, FRIEDRICH. Kleines Praktikum der Vegetationskunde. Berlin,
1926.
MELIN, ELIAS. Untersuchungen uber die Bedeutung der Baummykorrhiza.
Jena, 1925.
MOLLER, FRIEDRICH ALFRED GUSTAV JOBST. Der Waldbau; Vorlesungen
fur Hochschul- Studenten. Vol. 1. Ed. by Helene Moller & Erhard
Hausendorff. Berlin, 1929.
MOLLER, HJALMAR AUGUST. Bidrag till Bornholms fossila flora ( Rh'dt
och Lias). Gymnospermer. Stockholm, 1903.
. Bidrag till Bornholms fossila flora. Pteridofyter. Lund, 1902.
MOLISCH, HANS. Im Lande der aufgehenden Sonne. Wien, 1927.
. Pfianzenphysiologie als Theorie der Gartnerei. Ed. 5. Jena,
1922.
NATHORST, ALFRED GABRIEL. Bilder ur forntidens vaxtverj^ Stpckholm,
1877. ^ _ -;-
. Contributions a la flore fossile du Japan. Stoclcholm, 1883.
. Die oberdevonische Flora des Etlesmere- Landes. Kristiania,
1904.
MEMBERS OF T H E CORPORATION
Edward D. Adams
Vincent Astor
F. L. Atkins
John W. Auchincloss
George F. Baker
Stephen Baker
Henry de Forest Baldwin
Sherman Baldwin
Edmund L. Baylies
Prof. Charles P. Berkey
C. K. G. Billings
George Blumenthal
Marston T. Bogert
George P. Brett
George S. Brewster
Prof. N. L. Britton
Dr. Nicholas M. Butler
Prof. W. H. Carpenter
Marin Le Brun Cooper
James W. Cromwell
Henry W. de Forest
Robert W. de Forest
Rev. Dr. H. M. Denslow
Thomas A. Edison
Benjamin T. Fairchild
William C. Ferguson
Marshall Field
William B. 0 . Field
Childs Frick
Daniel Guggenheim
Murry Guggenheim
Edward S. Harkness
Prof. R. A. Harper
T. A. Havemeyer
A. Heckscher
Hon. Joseph P. Hennessy
Frederick Trevor Hill
Anton G. Hodenpyl
Marshall A. Howe
Archer M. Huntington
Adrian Iselin
Walter Jennings
Otto H. Kahn
Darwin P. Kingsley
Clarence Lewis
Adolph Lewisohn
Frederick J. Lisman
Kenneth K. Mackenzie
Parker McCollester
V. Everit Macy
Edgar L. Marston
W. J. Matheson
George McAneny
John L. Merrill
Hon. Ogden L. Mills
Samuel Mofntt
H. de la Montagne, Jr.
Barrington Moore
J. Pierpont Morgan
Dr. Lewis R. Morris
Dr. Robert T. Morris
Hugh Neill
Eben E. Olcott
Prof. Henry F. Osborn
Chas. Lathrop Pack
Rufus L. Patterson
Henry Phipps
F. R. Pierson
James R. Pitcher
H. Hobart Porter
Johnston L. Redmond
Ogden Mills Reid
John D. Rockefeller
W. Emlen Roosevelt
Prof. H. H. Rusby
Hon. George J. Ryan
Dr. Reginald H. Sayre
Mortimer L. Schiff
Henry A. Siebrecht
John K. Small
Valentine P. Snyder
James Speyer
J. E. Spingarn
Frederick Strauss
F. K. Sturgis
B. B. Thayer
Charles G. Thompson
Robert Thorne
Louis C. Tiffany
Felix M. Warburg
Paul M. Warburg
Allen Wardwell
H. H. Westinghouse
Bronson Winthrop
Grenville L. Winthrop
MEMBERS OF THE ADVISORY COUNCIL
Mrs. Arthur H. Scribner, Mrs.
Chairman Mrs.
Mrs. Edward C. Bodman. Mrs.
Secretary Mrs.
Mrs. Robert Bacon Mrs.
Miss Elizabeth Billings Mrs.
Mrs. Andrew Carnegie Mrs.
Mrs. Diaries D. Dickey Mrs.
Mrs. John W. Draper Mrs.
Mrs. Carl A. de Gersdorff Mrs.
Miss Elizabeth S. Hamilton Mrs.
Mrs. A. Barton Hepburn
Robert C. Hill Mrs.
Frederick C. Hodgdon Mrs.
Walter Jennings Mrs.
Bradish Johnson Mrs.
Delancey Kane Mrs.
Gustav E. Kissel Mrs.
William A. Lockwood Mrs.
David Ives Mackie Mrs.
John R. McGinley Mrs.
Roswell Miller Mrs.
Wheeler H. Peckham Mrs.
Mrs.
George W. Perkins
Harold I. Pratt
Wm. Kelly Prentice
James Roosevelt
Samuel Sloan
Charles H. Stout
Theron G. Strong
Henry 0. Taylor
John T. Terr}-
Harold McL. Turner
Louise Beebe Wilder
William H. Woodin
HONORARY MEMBER OF THE ADVISORY COUNCIL
Mrs. E. Henry Harriman
G E N E R A L I N F O R M A T I ON
Some of the leading features of T h e New York Botanical Garden
a r e :
Four hundred acres of beautifully diversified land in the northern part
of the City of New York, through which flows the Uronx River. A native
hemlock forest is one of ihe features of the tract.
Plantations of thousands of native and introduced trees, shrubs, and
flowering1 plants.
Gardens, including a beautiful rose garden, a rock garden of rock-loving
plants, and fern and herbaceous gardens.
Greenhouses, containing thousands of interesting plants from America
and foreign countries.
Flower shows throughout the year— in the spring, summer, and autumn
displays of narcissi, daffodils, tulips, irises, peonies, roses, lilies, wai « i
lilies, gladioli, dahlias, and chrysanthemums; in the winter displays of
greenhouse- blooming plants.
A museum, containing exhibits of fossil plants, existing plant families,
local plants occurring within one hundred miles of ' he City of New Yuili,
and the economic uses of plants,
An herbarium, comprising more than one million specimens of Amer­ican
and foreign species.
Exploration in different parts of tlie United States, the West Indies,
Central and South America, for the study and collection of the character­istic
flora.
Scientific research in laboratories and in the field into the diversified
problems of plant life.
A library of botanical literature, comprising more I hau 3^, 000 \ n « > Y-.
and numerous pamphlets.
Public lectures on a great variety of botanical topics, continuing
throughout the year.
Publications on botanical subjects, partly of technical, scientific and
partly of popular, interest.
The education of school children and the public through the above
features and the giving of free information on botanical, horticultural,
and forestal subjects.
T h e Garden is dependent upon an annual appropriation by the
City of New York, private benefactions and membership fees. It
possesses now nearly two thousand members, and applications for
membership are always welcome. The classes of membership are!
Benefactor single contribution $ 25,000
Patron single contribution ',,"
Fellow for Life single contribution 1,000
Member for Life single contribution 250
Fellowship Member annual fee 100
Sustaining Member annual fee 25
Annual Member annual fee 10
Contributions to the OitrcJeu miiy be oV(] uH. ei] from taxable Incomes.
The following is an approved form of bequest:
I hereby bequeath to The New York Botanical ( Jarden incorporated under
the LOWS of New York, Chapter % Hf> Of IX'.)}, the Hum of
All requests for f u r t h e r information should be sent to
T H E N E W YORK BOTANICAL GARDEN
IJRONX PARK, N EW YORK CITY